ITP Camp 2012 Accepting Applications

Welcome to the Un-University! ITP Camp 2012 is now accepting applications.

ITP is a two-year graduate program located in the Tisch School of the Arts at New York University whose mission is to explore the imaginative use of communications technologies — how they might augment, improve, and bring delight and art into people’s lives. Perhaps the best way to describe us is as a Center for the Recently Possible.

ITP Camp is like ITP Classic put in the blender and smooshed into a month. It is ITP’s test kitchen, its R&D arm, its back of the napkin. It’s the place were we encourage you, our faculty, former students, colleagues, and community to experiment, challenge, and play. For 30 years ITP has been a hub of experimentation in art, media and technology. For 2 years ITP Camp has been where ITP tries the newest and edgiest on for size.

Once again this June we are inviting non-student, working professionals to come to ITP on weekends and evenings to make stuff, hear speakers on the cutting edge, and collaborate with people from diverse disciplines. The creative charge of ITP Camp comes from the community of participants sharing their ideas, skills, criticisms and passions with each other in small, informal groups. We’re creating a flexible structure, an Un-University, that is responsive and supportive to the group we select. The structure is based on “unconferences” such as foocamp or barcamp, where presentations and discussions form in response to participants’ interests and projects.

Because of its experimental structure, the content of camp changes every year. We don’t know what 2012 will bring but here are some examples of sessions from last year:

• “Entrepreneurship for Creatives” with Tarikh Korula

• “Communications for Insurgents” with Clay Shirky

• “Interactive Video for Artists” with Gabe Barcia-Colombo

• “Build Your Own Gel Electrophoresis Box” with Amanda Parkes

• “Meet the Makerbots” with Caroline Brown

• “Arduino + Android” with Shawn Van Every & Tom Igoe

• “Subway as a Musical Instrument” with Alexander Chen

• “Making Electricity” with Jeff Feddersen

• “Demystifying Digital Fabrication” with Corrie Van Sice

• “Gestural Interfaces” with Greg Borenstein

• “Prototyping for Wearables” with Kate Hartman

• “Hacking the Dinner Party: Sous Vide & Meat Glue” with Mike Lee

• “Mobile UX” with Dan Kawaski

You will have the time to learn new skills, programs, devices, and tools, and to engage in conversations with peers and gurus about the latest trends in many areas of technology, from phone apps and sculpture to social software and entrepreneurship. The format is structured enough for you to get something done yet unstructured enough that you can participate in making it what you want it to be. ITP faculty, staff, and Camp counselors will be there to make sure everyone gets the guidance and support they need. Space is limited to ensure a robust and productive experience.

We have exciting new experiments up our sleeves. To stay tuned to breaking camp news, follow ITP Camp on Twitter: http://twitter.com/itpcamp

This year we are offering weekly rates in addition to the monthly one. That way if you live in a far off place you can still swing by for a week or two. Nerd-cation in NYC! Information on fees and discounts can be found here: http://itp.nyu.edu/camp/when

ITP Camp is a great opportunity for professional development. It is quite common for companies and universities alike to sponsor their employees to attend.

Camp is a platform for experimentation. If you have an experiment you’d like to run, a talk you’d like to give, or a discussion you’d like to lead, this is a great opportunity. Suggest a session for ITP Camp here:http://bit.ly/ITPCampSuggestASession

Finally, we’d love it if you could help us spread the word. We all have friends and colleagues who are ITP-curious. Share the link with them (http://itp.nyu.edu/camp) so they can check it out.

If you have any questions or ideas please email us at summeritp@gmail.com. Hope to see you this summer!